Clean air is an important part of maintaining health. Environments that contain air-borne pollutants and infectious agents have been the subject of much publicity and awareness in the recent past. Second-hand cigarette smoke, carbon monoxide, prominent publicity regarding Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), dust, pollen and automotive exhaust has raised public awareness of these issues. The listed pollutants, among others, can cause respiratory discomfort, disease, damage, or inefficiency.
Some of these effects can be temporary, as when exposed to an irritant or allergen where the effect disappears after the allergen is removed. Some of these effects can be permanent, as when second-hand cigarette smoke or radon causes lung cancer. It is beneficial to an otherwise healthy person to maintain a supply of high quality breathable air by either filtering the ambient air before inhalation, or by providing an alternate source for the breathable air that excludes a large fraction of ambient air.
It is well known that people who suffer from respiratory disease, such as emphysema, may pull a cart that bears an oxygen tank that supplies oxygen to an area around the nose or mouth in order to provide an enhanced oxygen supply to the damaged lungs. Another example is the use of oxygen masks in hospitals to provide oxygen support to persons needing it. These systems provide higher quality air in a manner that is not easily portable for an individual. The oxygen supply in these circumstances may be heavy, bulky and unsightly. An individual is therefore not likely to carry such a device unless forced to by medical necessity.
For the purposes of this application, higher quality air refers to air with either more desirable characteristics, fewer undesirable characteristics, or both. Percent of oxygen content, presence of particulates or pollen, aromatic compounds, gaseous and particulate carbon compounds including hydrocarbons, nitrogen containing compounds, carbon monoxide, ozone, viral infectious agents, bacterial infectious agents, sulfur containing compounds, dust, soot, smoke, smog, and many other compounds can, among many other factors, be used when determining air quality.
As air quality in many cities declines, and as the perception that the number and quantity of harmful components in the air is increasing, there is a growing group of people who wish to breathe higher quality air but who are unwilling to transport a large tank of higher quality air around in a cart.
In addition, breathing enhanced quality air or increased oxygen content air may have health benefits for athletes and active people. It is well known that atmospheric pressure and thus the partial pressure of oxygen available for breathing is reduced at higher altitudes. Whether hiking in the mountains or sitting in a commercial airliner reduced oxygen availability may make people feel fatigued, irritable or just out of sorts.
The health and wellness industry has begun to place an emphasis on making people who may already be in excellent health feel better. Spas and other facilities that pamper and comfort their clients are more and more common.
Further, some people have developed a desire to stop periodically in commercial locations called oxygen bars. Oxygen bars provide customers with, among other services, the opportunity to temporarily inhale higher quality air. However, such an establishment is not always nearby when a person has a desire to inhale higher quality air.